Loveless
by yin-chan
Summary: A oneshot ReTi fanfic that takes place after the events of FF7.


-  
FF7 and it's characters are copyright of Square-Enix and Tetsuya Nomura.

I didn't know where else to throw this. I just started writing on the spur of the moment, and it just...appeared.

My very first ReTi fanfic --- ahaha...I turn to reading ReTi fanfics whenever I feel somewhat upset. Reno's attitude around Tifa always makes me feel slightly better. Especially fanfics written by Savvy Savie, and Sabre Soul, they are orgasmically good. sighs ReTi is soooo addictive, I'm telling ya.  
Well, I was upset, so I just had the urge to write, and write I did.

It was going to be a very very short one-shot, just a few paragraphs, but I couldn't stop.

I present to you, "Loveless", my very first ReTi fanfiction! Be kind!

It takes place after the events of FF7, before the events of AC.

Crap, I haven't written anything in...sooooo long, years even. Forgive forgive if I have lost my touch. XDD

--------

The little bell trinkled as the door opened, signalling a person entering the bar.

Tifa barely looked up from her spot behind the counter, where she was wiping the glasses.  
"We're closed, and you know that." Her voice was weary, her face tired. Her beautiful porcelain skin was showing signs of lethargy and her sleek dark bangs were all messed-up. Her once-long hair was now short, extending to just below her shoulders, where it had once fell down to her waist, catching the light whenever she moved, enrapturing the gaze of lustful men who frequented her bar. She had chopped it all off, ever since the Lifestream had gushed out of the Planet and destroyed Meteor. Ever since everyone had returned home, home to someone waiting for them. Everyone except her. Ever since Cloud had left.

The person who had entered sauntered up to the counter, as if he hadn't heard her statement. He seated himself casually atop the stool, as if it was something he had been accustomed to doing for a long time.

"How ya doing today, babe?" He asked nonchalantly, a small smirk playing upon his lips. "Gimme the usual."

Tifa sighed, and put down the cloth she was holding. She slowly reached out to a glass located beneath the counter. The same glass he drank from every night. His glass.

"Y'know, too much alchohol is gonna be the death of you." She said softly as she poured him a shot of vodka.  
"Are you worried about me?" asked Reno teasingly, accepting the glass. He didn't drink from it though, merely holding it lightly, suspended from his fingers, as his clear aquamarine eyes blazed straight at Tifa.  
Tifa rolled her eyes, avoiding his gaze. Ever since she had reopened her bar in Edge City, Reno had been a frequent customer. She had given him a good beating up the first time he had set foot in, but he still returned regularly every night, regardless of her efforts to throw him out.  
He had stumbled in one night, wet, drunk and - shockingly - crying. He had lamented about Tseng, about his past, about his life, and for once Tifa had not had the heart to turn him away.  
She had given him his drinks, she had listened to him, she had found herself feeling the same way about her wretched relationship with Cloud.

Aerith, Aerith, Aerith. It was all he ever thought about. The bastard wouldn't take her phone calls, wouldn't come to her dinner parties, wouldn't even live with her. Even though she ran the Strife Delivery Service on the side, the only times she saw him was when he popped in about once a week to give delivery notices. Even then, he averted her gaze. The thing that hurt her even more was that he chose to live in Aerith's church, choosing to isolate himself from the comrades he had fought with. What about our feelings? What about my feelings? Tifa had damned him, as much as she missed Aerith, her affections for Cloud were torn more and more so with every passing day.

She had drank with Reno, they had shared their miseries. They had awoken the next morning with splitting hangovers, both slumped together behind the counter. And they had laughed.

The next night, he had returned and she had welcomed him. From then on, he had been coming back, every night without fail, after the bar had closed. Doesn't like company, was his excuse. Tifa knew it was because he didn't like the stares people gave him. Being an ex-Turk, being responsible for so many deaths, now being part of the WRO...it seemed the dirty work was never finished, and his hands could never be free of the blood.

"Hey Teef." Reno's brash voice awoke her from her thoughts.  
"Huh?" She looked up at him. "I'm sorry...need another drink?" Reno raised one eyebrow in mock surprise, and gestured his head slightly towards the counter. The cloth that Tifa had been holding had slipped from her fingers and was now resting at her feet.  
"Oh." Tifa blushed slightly, a bit embarassed that she had been so caught up in her own world in his presence. She bent down to pick it up, taking a little longer than she should. Reno's watchful eyes followed her movements as she stood back up and rinsed the cloth.

Tifa was growing more and more flustered as she felt Reno's gaze on her. She had never expected to be friends again with her ex-enemy.  
"Stop staring at me." she stated finally, frowning as Reno gave a small chuckle in response to her little comment.  
"But why, babe? You know you're fascinating to watch." His grin widened as he saw her rub the cloth even harder into the counter-top.  
"And I bet you're just as fascinating between the sheets as well, babe. Fuckingly - fascinatingly - fantastic." He pronounced the last few words slowly, enjoying the effect they were having on her. "Whaddaya say --" He was cut off as Tifa flung the cloth straight in his face.  
"Get out, Reno." she snarled at him, glowering. His amusement increased at her evident embarassment.  
"A bit tense today, aren't we?" he drawled, leaning back and tossing the cloth idly into the air, then deftly catching it again. He repeated this a few times, his eyes never leaving Tifa's face. Tifa sighed, shaking her head and turning away.  
"Sorry...I'm not feeling so good today." She paused, her back facing him. Silence.  
"Cloud ... he left me a message." She didn't know why she was speaking, she didn't know why she was telling him this. What she did know, was that she was tired of everything, the same routine, the same drudgery, the same false hopes she carried with her everyday, the hope that Cloud would appear and look at her the same way he looked at Aerith. She was weary, and without realizing it, the tears started to drop from her eyes. Embarassed, she hastily tried to rub them away with the back of her hands.  
"Damn it Tifa...get a hold of yourself..." she scolded herself furiously, hoping that Reno woudn't see her in such a pathetic state.

"Hey." Reno's voice came from just behind her, startling her at how close he suddenly was. His voice was gentle, not so much the harsh, arrogant manner he usually wore. It was tender, it was warm, and it was a tone Tifa had longed to hear in a long while.  
She felt a nervous hand on her shoulder, and almost giggled. She could tell that Reno was obviously inexperienced with dealing with crying women, but the hand was warm, and the fingers were gentle despite their calloused exterior.  
"Look..." Reno's voice continued carefully, as if hesitant of what to say. "That spiky ass isn't worth it. You're beautiful Teef, a good woman, and you deserve more than what he's been giving you." Reno removed his hand from her shoulder and rubbed the back of his head arkwardly, as Tifa turned round to face him.

She stared at their shoes, unsure of what to say. She hadn't expected Reno to be this kind, but something in her wanted comfort. Something in her wanted the support she had been looking for. Finally, she found her tongue.  
"Don't insult him, Reno"  
Reno laughed, put back at ease.  
"That's more like it, Tifa." In one swift movement, he bent his knees and crouched down in front of her, balancing on his toes, so that his face was staring back up at her, his aquamarine eyes bearing into her. "Now what do you say to some wild luvin', just you and me"  
He was met with a swift kick to his shins that made him collapse to the floor, groaning. Dammit, that girl was violent. And strong. Too strong for her own good.  
Tifa bent her face down alarmingly close to his and grinned. He could feel her sweet breath on his eyelashes, filling him with an unknown, unfamiliar emotion he felt nowadays whenever he saw her. Oh this was more than lust, this was so much more than just lust. Reno reprimanded himself silently, but his eyes stared back into her orbs. They were still glimmering with tears, but they didn't look so sad anymore.  
"Reno of the Turks...this Lockheart is one girl that you are never going to sleep with"  
"Watch your words, Teef...watch your words." Reno groaned, the pain in his ankles blinding him. Tifa laughed and hauled him up roughly.  
"It's late. You should leave." She turned and moved back to the counter where she absent-mindedly began rearranging some glasses.  
Reno limped over to her and whispered in her ear.

"This isn't you Teef. You know it.You're tired. Where did your energy go?" She shut her eyes as she heard him whisper, the brush of his skin against her hair. Reno smirked and stepped back. He started moving towards the door, but he heard a sigh escape Tifa's lips. As he turned his head, he saw her fall back, her face creased with fatigue. Immediately forgetting the pain in his leg, he leapt over the counter in one smooth movement and grabbed her before she fell.  
"Tifa!" He shook her, alarmed at her sudden display of weakness. "Tifa!" He repeated, anxiety taking over him.  
"Fucking shit this..." he cursed under his breath, looking around, the unconscious woman in his arms. "Dammit Tifa, you're heavy...now what am I gonna do with you?"

His eyes darted over to the stairs, all 20 of them. He cursed again, but knew that Tifa would most probably knock his eyeballs out if he had just left her lying there on the floor.  
Eyeing Tifa warily, he scooped her up and marched carefully up the stairs, taking extra caution not to bang her head against the banisters. For once he was glad he had endured those harsh trainings as a Turk, at least his strength came in handy now. He entered a room at the top of the landing, he could tell it was hers by the lilac sheets and the slightly faded photo of Cloud and the orphans on the dresser.  
Carefully, he placed her down on the bed and pulled the sheets over her. He straightened back up and stared at her.  
"Damn, she's gorgeous." he thought to himself, watching the loose strands of hair fall over her face, her dark eyelashes pressed shut against her cheeks. "Strife, you have no idea what you're doing"  
Leaning forward, he pressed his hand to her forehead to see if she had a temperature. Her skin was smooth and cool to his touch. Reno let out a sigh of relief and turned to leave.

"..." he heard Tifa mutter something inaudibly. Tipping his head back to glance at her, he saw tears flow from her eyelids as she slept, the grief on her face evident as her eyelids shuddered. Suddenly he realized that seeing her in pain hurt him so much to watch that it was almost unbearable. Reno fidgeted arkwardly, unsure of how to react. He hated feeling so helpless, he hated feeling this way around her. She had him wrapped around her little finger and she didn't even know it.  
"...damn."

Tifa blinked wearily, her eyes getting used to the surroundings. Slowly, she pulled herself up, rubbing her forehead, trying to remember what had happened the night before. As she looked around slowly, she almost screamed to see Reno slouching in the chair beside her, his head tilted back, his limbs sprawled over anyhow.  
Overcoming her initial shock, she leaned forward to observe him closer, her eyes ran over the painful looking scars on his cheeks, his flaming red hair moving slightly as he breathed, his dry lips twisted into a grimace that looked like he bore the weight of the world on his shoulders.  
Sleeping, he almost looked like a little boy, one who was innocent, one who would never harm a fly. Tifa felt herself mellowing as she studied his features, she was the only one he had ever opened up to, and he was the only one that would always appear in front of her eyes every day, without fail, regardless of wheter she had just thrown him out the night before, regardless of wheter he was bleeding, or weary, or just downright miserable, he always greeted her with a cheerful, slightly wry, "Hey, how's it going, babe?"

As her eyes traveled to his shut eyelids, she lingered upon them for a moment, contemplating the range of emotions she felt whenever he was around. Being with him was infectious, there was no doubt about that. But then, Tifa had never felt she could feel this way for anyone other than Cloud. Then again...she realized with a painful wrench that she couldn't even remember the last time she had felt happy being with Cloud.  
The piercing aquamarine eyes shot open without warning, startling Tifa and causing her to draw back in a hurry.

Silence.

"Good morning, sunshine! Feeling better?" Reno yawned as he stretched, breaking the tension. "Ow! ...Damn chair"  
Tifa couldn't help but laugh.  
"Thanks for what you did...last night"  
"Hey, you think I would've left a sexy babe lying unconscious on the floor without making my move?" Reno grinned suavely. "Don't worry, I used protection." He stressed the last word, grinning cheekily.  
Tifa laughed again and rolled her eyes. Then her face became serious and her eyes fastened themselves on Reno.

"Why didn't you leave?" she asked, her voice quiet.  
Reno looked at her, his usual calm, unflinching expression on his face.  
"Well, I figured that if I left, I would probably miss the chance to get laid once you woke up, to show your undying gratitude towards me"  
Tifa glared at him for this mock reply, and even though his expression was the same, she saw a glint in his eye that told her he was joking.  
"Oh, I give up, Reno." she laughed, throwing her arms in the air. "I'll never get a real reason out of you"  
Reno grinned lazily, slightly embarassed himself. He knew the real reason why he didn't leave, and Tifa knew it too.  
As he sauntered downstairs to make them some half-assed breakfast, he smiled to himself as he heard her fall back into the pillows, with a sigh, that for once sounded like the old Tifa.

Reno wouldn't be leaving for a long time, no matter how many times Tifa attempted to throw him out.

---------- 


End file.
